In terms of humans, I completely agree with Michael Hadjiargyrou, Chair of the Department of Life Sciences, New York Institute of Technology. In his 2014 commentary, he wrote:

‘We all evolved from the same ancestors and are, indeed, all virtually genetically identical to each other, making us a single race.’

It is true that humans do exist in discrete genetic sub-populations and in medicine, physicians consider a person’s ethnic background to help determine their risk of various diseases. But race is an example of typological thinking, it exists as a cultural construct that has been widely misused and continues to pervade our planet, deeply embedded in prejudices and narrow-minded traditions and values.

But Reni Eddo-Lodge says that

not seeing race does little to deconstruct racist structures or materially improve the conditions which people of colour are subject to daily. In order to dismantle unjust, racist structures we must see race. We must see who benefirs from their race, who is disproportionately impacted by negative stereotypes about their race, and to who power and privilege is bestowed upon-earned or not- because of their race, their class and their gender. Seeing race is essential to changing the system.

I encourage you all to read this powerful and important book. It is beautifully-written but it’s not an easy read. There were so many, deeply depressing things that I didn’t know. Reni Eddo-Lodge looks at the British history of slavery, police brutality and the enduring obstacles that reproduce inequalities in education and employment.

After Britain voted to leave the European Union in June 2016, we were told reported hate crimes drastically grew in number and that racism and xenophobia was on the rise in Britain again. Looking at the history shows that racism did not erupt suddenly and from nothing, rather it was embedded in British society. And it is a white problem. It reveals the anxieties, hypocrisies and doable standards of whiteness. Racism is embedded in the system.